Steve Sarkisian, talking to star quarterback Jake Locker last year, went 5-7 and 7-6 in his first two years as Washington’s football coach. That came after the Huskies went 0-12 in 2008. Sarkisian, an ex-Brigham Young QB, has lost Locker to the NFL. But the Huskies no longer appear to be rebuilding.

SEATTLE — Steve Sarkisian’s office is old and basic, a true reflection of Washington’s football facilities. It’s not even in the stadium, for crying out loud.

But the coach’s office in the main athletic department building nearby has a couple of important symbols of what Washington football once was and what it’s becoming again. He proudly points to two pictures on the wall.

One is a pregame shot of Sarkisian and Don James, who is Washington’s Knute Rockne. James is the only coach to lead Washington to three consecutive Rose Bowls, the only one to lead the Huskies to a national championship.

The other is a 2009 picture of Husky Stadium flooded with fans wearing rain gear and smiles. The Huskies, 0-12 the previous year, had just stunned Southern California 16-13 in Week 3 on a last-second field goal. The Tyrone Willingham Error was officially over.

“That one kick,” Sarkisian said, “started it all.”

Washington didn’t have to bargain much for Sarkisian even with the first goose egg in its history. He knew Washington. Growing up in the 1980s in Torrance, Calif., he knew the Huskies when they were real Huskies. James’ Huskies featured bruising defenses, tough running backs and NFL-bound quarterbacks throwing bullets through the rain.

Sarkisian also knew no other NFL city in the country supports its college team better than Seattle. In that 0-12 nightmare, Washington still averaged 63,639 fans at home. That ranked third in the Pac-10.

“When I was growing up just running around as a little kid and working my way up through high school, this was the place to come to school,” Sarkisian said. “I remember getting one letter from the University of Washington with Don James’ signature on it while I was being recruited, and it gave me goose bumps.”

The hiring of Sarkisian was a perfect fit. With the Huskies, Sarkisian got a job he says is “in the top five” in the country. With Sarkisian, the Huskies got a USC offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach when the Trojans won a national championship and two Heismans.

Sarkisian knew he had a Pompeii-size rebuilding job. The 2008 Huskies were outscored by an average of 39-13 and had the No. 116-ranked offense in the country. Only three schools scored fewer points. In four years under Willingham, Washington had only one all-conference player.

But the depth of despair went deeper than numbers. Sarkisian could tell that his first day on the job. He called a team meeting before his first news conference.

“I was waiting for the team to come down the tunnel, and as they were walking down the tunnel. a couple of things struck me,” Sarkisian said. “One, very few guys were wearing University of Washington football gear.

“Second, there were a lot of hoods on — and we were indoors — and heads down. I thought to myself, ‘Man, this is way bigger than X’s and O’s.’ “

Sarkisian lucked out in one regard. Never in history had a coach inherited a winless program boasting the potential No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. Jake Locker had healed from an injury, but Sarkisian didn’t like what he saw.

Locker played football like a linebacker who could throw a spiral. Sarkisian turned him into a quarterback.

“We had to break him down,” Sarkisian said. “We started from square one, from his stance to his drop to his ball placement.

“Most guys train for that position, that style since the sixth grade. They’re going to the quarterback gurus. He had a crash course. He got a master’s in 18 months.”

With the strength of Chris Polk, the first Huskies player to rush for 1,000 yards as a freshman and sophomore, Sarkisian took an 0-12 team and lifted it last year to 7-6, including a vengeful win over Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl. He played a national-high 16 true freshmen.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Tyreek Hill didn’t know what to do when he started hearing thousands of people in Arrowhead Stadium chanting his name, even as he stood all alone on the frozen turf waiting for the punt.